Improvement in railroad-signals



2 sheets-sneer 1. W. E. BADGER. Railroad-Signal.

No. 222,436. Patented Dec. 9, 1879.

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` '2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

W. E. BAD-GER. Railroad-Signal.

No. 222,436. Patented Dec. 9,1879.

UNITED STATES yPILLTENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM E. BADGER, OF QUINCY, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN RAILROAD-SIGNALS.

Specification forming part ofvLetters Patent No. 2224136, dated December 9, 1879; application filed January 22, 1879.

To all whom t may concern:

\ Be it known that I, WILLIAM E. BADGER,

of Quincy, in the county of Norfolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and .useful or Improved vAlarm-Signal for Railroads, which invention is -fullyset forth in the following specification, reference bein g had to the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to that class of railroad-signals which are designed to be inoperative when the main line isclosed, but operative when such main line is open, so as to give to the trainlengineer timely warning of impending danger when approaching an open switch, in order thathe may cause the train to be brought to a stand-still before it shall arrive at such switch; andtheinvention cons sists in four essentialparts, to wit: first, agong or bell attached to the engine or near it,

with which tosound an alarm, together with devices to strike such,` gong when actuated; second, an automatic self-impelling device, which, when released, will alternately bring into `and withdraw from the path of the gong@ striking devices an arm by which such striking devices are operated; third, in devices so combined with the switch-lever that the opening or closing of the switch shall render such devices operative; and, fourth, in the transmitting devices by which the action of the devices so combined with `the switch-lever are transmitted to and actuate the releasing and locking devicesl connected with the self-impelling mechanism which makes and breaks contact with the gong-striker.

. `Figure lis a plan view of that portion of projecting arm by which'the gong-striker is actuated. Fig. 3 is an elevation as viewed from the right of Fig. 2, and showing the .switch and connecting devices. Fig. 4 is a vertical section and elevation, such section being taken on line .r x, Fig. 1, and the elevation -as viewed from4 such section line, and looking to the right in said Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a detached perspective view of the principal local devices shown in Fig. 2. Fig. 6 is a detached plan view of the switch-actuated devices, the trailsmitting devices, and a part of the devices by which contact with the gong-striker is made or broken.

In these views, A represents a common switch, by which and its lever B the hinged section b b of the track is adjusted to connect either with the main line c c or with the siding d d. Lever B is pivoted to standard A in the usual manner, and carries a pin, F, for the purpose to be stated. C is a standard, secured to the switcliplatform, and upon it is pivoted the arm D, which 'terminates at the top in a Gothic point, and at its lower end it is permanently in contact with a spring, E, which, whenthe lever is free, serves to bring and retain it in a vertical position. rIhe pivot of lever B being at a greater distance from pin F than is the pivot of arm D from its apex, and the path of the pin, when the lever is actuated and is vertical, being within the are of the circle described by the apex of arm D` when it vibrat'es on its pivot, therefore,

when the switch is opened or closed by actuating-lever B, the contact of pin F with arm D will carry the same along until the diversity in their paths above described releases arm D, when spring E restores it to a vertical position.

Pivoted to arm D, above its own pivotal center, is the rod Gr, which is pivoted at its other end to arm H, secured to shaft I, which latter is journaled in standards J J', and hence, as lever D is vibrated by the means described, it correspondingly rotates shaft I, which shaft is of suflicient length to connect the switch-actuating devices with the alarm-sounding devices, that actuate the gong-striker, at the required distance from the switch.

At the end of shaft I distant from the switch it is provided with a cross head or short double arm, M, which, when the shaft is vibrated inV either direction, depresses the outer or free end of lever L, which is pivoted in standard K, and which, when not actuated by arm M, rests upon stud N. The opposite or inner end of lever L is formed with an open slot or forks, to engage the stops c a on disk S in the manner and for the purposes to be described.

The elevated stand l serves as a support and pivotal bearing for the upper end of shaft Q, which at its lower end is journaled in a suitable bearing. Upon this shaft and carried by it is the disk S, before referred to. Below this disk, and suitably connected with shaft Q, for its actuation thereby, is a train of gearwheels, T, and their driving-sprin g U, so connected with stud V that, by rotating the stud, the spring may be wound when byuse it becomes slackened.

A supplemental angle-lever, W, pivoted in standard e, is connectedV by its forks, as shown in Fig. 5, with the inner end of lever L, and a spring, O, attached to lever W, tends to depress both ot said levers. But as the end of lever W that forks upon lever L rises or falls its opposite end h moves in an opposite direction, whereby, as lever L is raised and released from contact with stop a, the end It of lever W will be depressed and brought in contact with one of such stops when the disk has made one-quarter of a revolution, and thereby arrest the rotation of the disk and its shaft Q; and as lever L is released by arm M, and depressed by spring 0, end h of lever W rises and releases its contact with the stop a, when the disk will rotate another quarter of a revolution, and a stop be brought in contact with lever L, thereby again arresting suoli rotation; and as at each opening or closing of the switch lever D will be moved out of a vertical position by pin F in lever B, and will by its spring E be returned to such vertical position, and by its actuating-shaft I, as described, lever L will be thereby raised, and, when released, will be depressed by spring O; and as the disk S, by its impelling devices and the united action of levers L and W, as described, will make a quarter of a revolution when such 1evers are actuated by shaft I, and another quarter revolution when such levers are actuated by spring 0, therefore arm R will, at each opening or closing of the switch, be carried through a half-circle, and be thereby alternately extended toward the track and away from the saine, and so as to be in the path of the bell-striker when the switch is open, and away from the track when the switch 'is closed.

When, by the opening of the switch, the arm R, by the means already described, is thrown to the front or toward the track, it will, as the train passes, be encountered by the arm Z, which rises from shaft j, which is pivoted in the side of the cab, and which carries on its inner end the rigid arm or pawl t', that e11- gagesin a notch or tooth in Ythe head of the gon g-hammer f, and thereby, as arm Z is rocked backward by its contact with arm R, the arm 'i will, by vibrating the hammer f on its pivot, increase the tension on its spring g, and cause it, when released, to give a sounding blow upon the gong Y.

It will be apparent that the alarm-gong may be arranged upon such part of the engine-cab or tender as may be most convenient, and that the mere striking devices may be varied as circumstances may render desirable.

I claim as my inventionl. In combination with a railway-switch, the pivotal spring-retained lever D and the actuating-pin F, secured in lever B, rod G, crankshaft I, with its arm M, pivotal levers L and W, and spring O, rod Q, with its arm R, and disk S, having stops a,.an actuating spring mechanism T U, and gong Y, with 'its striking mechanism connected with anni Z and arranged upon the engine X, substantially as specified.

2. The combination, with a railroad-switchoperating mechanism and a bell and its striking devices arranged upon a railroad-engine of a shaft, Q, with its arm R, a locking and releasing mechanism, and a motor to actuate such shaft when released, and a mechanism connected with and to transmit the movement of the switch-operating mechanism to thelocking and releasing mechanism of the dangersignal, all constructed substantially as specitied.

WILLI-AM E. BABGER.

Witnesses:

EUGENE HUMPHREY, T. W. PORTER. 

